July 07, 2025

Fiction Stranger Than Life


Fiction Stranger Than Life
Z symbol, Krasnodar Military School Russian Ministry of Defence, Wikimedia Commons

“Z literature” continues to grow.

Named after the “Z” symbol – a letter that has come to represent support for Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the genre refers to Russian books that push nationalistic sentiment through fantasy and science-fiction. 

Within Z literature is a trope known as popadantsy, “accidental travel.” In this trope, a central character travels back in time to a historical period to intervene and alter the trajectory of Russian history. The books are known to be crude, often not written by professional authors, and usually ending in the glory and triumph of Russia over the rest of the world. The popularity of Z literature, especially popadantsy, is growing among male Russian teens.

The genre might most closely resemble wartime fanfiction. Translations of the works seldom exist, but summaries by scholars and reporters studying the phenomenon can be found.

Sergej Sumlenny, political scientist and founder of the European Resilience Initiative Center, took to X in 2022 to call out dangerous trend. One example Summlenny cited was the book "Tsar of the Future," in which “a guy wakes up in a body of the Russian emperor Nicholas II, prevents the Russian Revolution, defeats Great Britain, and conquers Istanbul.”

An article by Mediazona exploring the genre offered a few summaries of other books. One, "Studies in Black," written by AI entrepreneur Olga Uskova, follows a character (with the same name as the author) who develops AI versions of Russia’s leaders, including Putin. In this universe, Putin is recovering from an assassination attempt while all other prominent leaders have conveniently been poisoned.

These time-travel alternate-universe fantasies allow authors to imagine ludicrous triumphs for the Russian state. Most frightening is their appeal to teens – the demographic most needed for enlistment.

Clearly the genre is part the rise of intense Russian nationalism, warping time and space to create an adventure narrative, while warping the "hero" story so as to glorify the Russian state and paint the rest of the world as antagonists.

You Might Also Like

A Pro-War Childhood?
  • October 31, 2024

A Pro-War Childhood?

Russian children are being instilled with militant patriotism through plays, stories, cartoons, and toys.
Lord of War's Fandom
  • July 25, 2024

Lord of War's Fandom

Russian teenagers continue to idolize PMC Wagner’s Yevgeny Prigozhin, even after his death.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955